However as the Christians that we are; or more particularly as the members of God’s "new creature," the church the body of Christ that we are in this present dispensation of God’s grace; our love should not be confined or limited to that which is merely natural. For God has both purposed and provided something better for us. Instead our love should move out of the realm of the natural and into the realm of the supernatural. In other words our love should move out of, and go beyond, that which belongs to purely ‘natural love’ and that is ‘common to man,’ to that which is Godly.

And indeed God’s love is supernatural. In other words it goes beyond that which is natural to man, exceeding it in all areas and in every way. For it is not only devoid of being adversely affected and restricted in any way by the corrupting effects of sin, (as man’s natural love is), but by its very nature it also possesses features and characteristics that are greater than, or surpass, what God originally instilled in man. Hence God’s love is supernatural compared to man’s ‘natural love.’

Moreover God designed that the greater and surpassing features and characteristics of His love be acquired by man as part of his godly education. This means that God designed that man should learn His supernatural love, and thereby come to possess it. Or in other words God designed that man should be taught by Him to love to the same extent and degree that He Himself does.

However what God originally designed is unable to occur with unregenerate, unjustified men. With the exception of what God has mercifully done to retard men’s devolution, ungodliness not only characterizes and embodies all that man is by nature, but it is also the sum and substance of all that he can do and can produce. Hence acquiring and operating upon God’s supernatural love — upon Godly love and charity — is ‘beyond unjustified men’s reach,’ so to speak. By default they are limited to ‘natural love.’

But such is not the case with us, who having believed "the gospel of Christ" have been justified and sanctified freely by God’s grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. We do not have to remain limited to the ‘natural love’ that is common to man, and upon which we operated while we were unjustified, and maybe have simply continued to operate upon since we became justified.

In accordance with our sanctification "in Christ," (and particularly in accordance with the sonship aspect of our sanctification), God has honored us with the privilege of learning, possessing, and operating on His supernatural love. The godly creature that He originally created man to be is actually able to be fulfilled in us through our "godly edifying," including the acquisition of Godly love and charity and walking therein.

However we are not only privileged with the opportunity to be taught of God to love as He does, it is also expected of us. For in accordance with granting us this phenomenal privilege God has also made full provision for us to be so taught. Moreover God has actually dedicated Himself to teaching us His godly love and getting it operating within us. Not only because it is naturally an essential component of godliness, but also because it is imperative that we learn to love as He does. For if we do not, the truth of the matter is that much of our Christian lives and walk may be in vain; no matter how much else we might learn and do ‘in the name of Christ.’

Since we have this wonderful privilege and great expectation; and since it is also imperative for us to operate on Godly love; the question that forms the title to this article is certainly worth asking. Are you being "taught of God to love one another"?

Now before you answer make sure you understand that this is not a foggy or nebulous-type question. It is not a question that ‘delves into the realm of the intangible or the inexpressible.’ It is not a speculative or abstract question in the sense that it cannot be answered with any real certainty, or with any real concrete understanding and conviction, that being "taught of God" is actually taking place. Nor is it a question that can only be answered on the basis of feelings, or impressions, or vague assumptions, or default suppositions, as if we do not possess the ability to understand enough about the issue so as to answer the question with any clear comprehension of how it takes place.

Instead it is a perfectly logical and reasonable question, to which we should be able to give a clear and intelligent answer. An answer that comes from sound and real knowledge of the process and procedure by which God teaches us to love as He does. An answer which, if it is "yes," cannot only intelligently and confidently explain just how it is occurring, but also can explain in detail just what is being taught, and learned, and why it is being taught and needs to be learned.

Wherefore your answer to the question should be neither vague, nor hedging, nor uncertain. You should not simply say, "I think so"; or, "I assume so"; or, "I hope so"; or, "I don’t know." For just as the apostle Paul knew for sure that the Thessalonian saints were being "taught of God to love one another," (and likewise also knew for sure that some other saints were not desirous of being so taught), so you should know for sure one way or the other.

With this being so, let’s postpone answering the question for the time being. Instead let’s first make sure that we understand and appreciate some of the fundamentals on this matter, so we at least know the gist of how it is that we are supposed to be "taught of God to love one another." Then having done so we will be in a better position to ask ourselves this question again, and to intelligently answer it.

Needless to say we can only give brief consideration to a few of the issues pertaining to being "taught of God to love one another." In fact we will only look at three of them, yet they will be sufficient for our purpose. Moreover as we take note of these three issues we will focus our attention primarily upon one simple thing in connection with them — i.e. the thing that identifies and defines what is necessary for learning Godly love, which in turn will allow us to clearly determine and acknowledge whether or not we are being "taught of God" to love what He does and to love as He does with charity.

As Paul described when he commended the Thessalonian saints for their "brotherly love," our provision for learning Godly love resides in God Himself teaching us to love as He does. For, as Paul said, the Thessalonians were "taught of God to love one another."

This means that resident in the very curriculum for our "godly edifying" in this present dispensation of God’s grace is the provision for God to be able to teach us to love what He does, to love as He does, and thereby to particularly love one another with Godly love. For when Paul speaks of us being "taught of God" he is not speaking of some abstract or ethereal or indefinable activity by which God mysteriously, or mystically, imparts knowledge to us. Rather Paul is speaking about the very concrete, substantial, and clearly definable activity of God educating us through His written word; and more particularly through the specific curriculum for our sonship education and edification that is set forth in Romans through Philemon.

Wherefore there is a tangible and identifiable and knowable means by which God teaches us to love what He does and to love as He does with charity. God teaches us Godly love as an integral part of our sonship edification, and we learn to love what He loves and as He loves as we intelligently and purposefully receive our sonship edification.

In connection with this it is very important that we understand that our "godly edifying" — our sonship edification — is not the issue of us simply learning things from God’s word. In other words "godly edifying" does not result from learning random Bible information, or even from learning a series of categorical or topical Bible doctrines. For "godly edifying" is just what it says it is. It is edification unto godliness. And in view of what godliness is this means that it is the issue of us learning very specific information from a particular curriculum of knowledge that has been purposefully designed by God to materially affect not only what we think, but also the very way that we think. And by the effectual working of this curriculum of knowledge God has provided for the complete range of our thinking process, (from the conception of thoughts, to the formulation of ideas and intentions, to the consideration of responses or reactions, to acting upon our thinking, and to dealing with the aftermath of it), to be the same as His. For through the effectual working of the curriculum of knowledge for our "godly edifying" God has provided for us to be "godly," which means that He has provided for us to think like He does, to live like He does, and to labour with Him in the things that He is doing in the operations of His business.

Wherefore "godly edifying" does not occur through random Bible reading and/or Bible study. It does not occur by going through a systematic theology, or by amassing and going through a great database of various doctrines on Biblical topics. Nor does it occur by default in a Christian’s life, or by some form of ‘spiritual osmosis,’ as if it just automatically happens or happens in some mysterious way as long as a Christian is sincere and reads his Bible and goes to church.

Instead "godly edifying" occurs in us by the only way that it can occur — by us deliberately learning the ‘mind renewing’ words of God that comprise the curriculum for our sonship edification, which God has specifically designed to enable us to think like He does, thinking both what He does and as He does; and then by learning them have them effectually work within us unto the production of actual Godly thinking, Godly living, and Godly labour in the details of our lives.

Therefore with respect to us being "taught of God" to have Godly love and charity, it takes place as we intelligently partake of our sonship edification. For it is integrally built into the curriculum for our "godly edifying."

Consequently throughout the curriculum for our "godly edifying" we regularly encounter a number of progressively developing forms of doctrine that have been specifically designed by God to teach us to love what He loves and to love as He loves. They teach us to actually think like He does, and the way that He does, having the very same kinds of cogitation that He has, with the result that we value and esteem what He does and do so in the very charitable way that He does and for the very same reasons that He does.

Wherefore as we learn these forms of doctrine and they effectually work within us as God has designed for them to work, we are successfully being "taught of God" to love as He does. His word effectually works within us to generate the very components of Godly love within us. Then having done so it effectually works within us to give us the capacity to knowingly think and act on the basis of Godly love in the details of our daily lives. Hence to knowingly walk in genuine Godly love and charity.

So then when it comes to truly knowing if we are being "taught of God" to love what He does and to love as He does with Godly charity, one of the first determining factors is whether we clearly know that we are receiving our sonship edification unto "godly edifying." If we know that this is so, then it provides us with the first measure of confident assurance that we actually are being "taught of God" unto Godly love. But if not, then we have reason to doubt.

Naturally enough another determining factor is found in the very forms of doctrine within the curriculum for our "godly edifying" by which God specifically teaches us to have His love and charity.

If in addition to knowing that we are receiving our proper sonship edification we also know that we are being taught, and are learning, the very forms of doctrine contained within our curriculum that are designed to generate and to breed the thoughts and thought-processes of Godly love within us, then we have all the more reason for being assured that we are being "taught of God" unto Godly love.

Wherefore we should not only know that God teaches us Godly love as we go through the curriculum for our "godly edifying," but we should also know what our course of study for learning Godly love is composed of. In other words we should at least have the understanding and appreciation for such things as its general scope, along with the logical sense and sequence to its structure. Moreover we should also understand the edifying, or building process nature, that there is to what God teaches us, so that we truly know what is involved in our Godly love ‘increasing’ and ‘abounding’ as we are told that it should.

Therefore, for example, if we are being "taught of God" to love as He does then we should readily understand and appreciate that our instruction in Godly love has a logical beginning to it — i.e. God logically begins it with a ‘first-thing-first’ component — and that this ‘first-thing-first’ component is the most fundamental component to God’s own love. Hence God logically provides for it to be generated within us first and foremost.

Plus in accordance with this we should also understand and appreciate that generating this most fundamental component of Godly love within us is what the effectual working of the beginning of our sonship edification is all about. Or in other words when our sonship edification pointedly gets underway beginning in Romans 12:3, this is what it begins with. It begins with God teaching us information by which the most fundamental component to His love can be effectually generated within us so that it exists within us just as it exists within Him, and so that it can then become effectually operational within us unto the shaping of our thinking just as it is effectually operational within Him and shapes His thinking.

Since this is what you should know I will directly ask, Do you understand and appreciate that when God begins your sonship edification by having Paul say to you…

… that by what He says He is providing for its effectual working to begin to generate His love within you? Or more to the point I should ask, Do you have the words of God in Romans 12:3 effectually working within you unto the production of the first component of Godly love?

You should be able to say "yes" to both questions, if you are being "taught of God" to love as He does.

Likewise you should also know how it is that as the beginning of our curriculum for "godly edifying" progresses on in Romans God provides for the further fundamental components of His love to be generated within us by the effectual working of the specific things that He teaches us to know and think. What’s more, in accordance with this you should also understand how it is that God has provided for His Godly love, (in particular "brotherly love"), to not only fundamentally exist and operate in you, but to also "increase" and "abound" in you; just as Paul expected the Thessalonian saints to know. For as Paul said…

The Third Issue: The Necessity of Acquiring Godly Love

Wherefore since Godly love and charity is indispensable to us; and since we should not want to ‘become’ something other than God intends, or ‘be nothing,’ or have what we do ‘profit us nothing’; then possessing and operating upon Godly love and charity is an absolute necessity for us, and ‘following after charity’ must be a top priority so that ‘all of our things can be done with charity.’

It follows, therefore, that if we are being "taught of God" to love as He does then we are knowingly ‘following after charity’ in our "godly edifying." We know both what that means and how to do it, and we are doing it. For we know how imperative it is for us to operate upon Godly love and charity.

Despite the very simple consideration we have given to the foregoing issues, and also the narrow focus of our attention in connection with each one, nonetheless you should now be in a somewhat better position to answer the question, Are you being "taught of God to love one another"? What’s more, in view of what God has Paul teach us in I Corinthians 13:1–3 you should certainly want to know the answer, and for it to be "yes."

Needless to say only you know your heart and know the honest answer to this question. But as you and I also know, we are not always completely honest with ourselves. For this very reason more than once we find Paul telling us not to deceive ourselves, as for example...

A Fitting Admonition